Continually Motivated to Look for Ways to Improve
Erick is excited about his family’s future. He is eager to try new ventures and to add more products to his store. Mentors International has been the catalyst that has helped change his life. He wants his neighbors to have the opportunity to learn from Mentors International. He has even offered up his house as a meeting place and now hosts group trainings from Mentors International.
Erick and Elvira live on their family’s land in a small Mayan community in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. Like many of their neighbors, they both tried to make an income selling their traditional embroidered clothing. But, because of the pandemic, sales dropped dramatically. They were making less than $65 a month, which was not enough to meet their family’s needs. That is when they met Mentors International. Erick wanted to change his family’s circumstances, but he was afraid and had many doubts.
With the help of his Mentor, they set up a plan to fatten his pigs and sell their meat. Erick was unsure if he had the space and resources to sell pigs. If he invested his money in feed, he was afraid he wouldn’t earn it back. Erick decided to sell pig feed to earn additional income and, at the same time, have the feed for his animals at a very affordable cost.
The first few weeks of selling were challenging for Erick; he felt nervous and insecure. However, with the support and encouragement of his Mentor, he found the motivation to overcome his fears and began to knock on more doors. Almost immediately, Erick saw positive results. He sold his entire feed sack and was ready to order more. What used to take 2-3 weeks to sell, Erick was able to sell in 3-5 days. This encouraged him to broaden his vision, and he began looking for ways to meet the needs of his community. The following month he began selling embroidery threads, which virtually everyone in his small village utilizes.
A few weeks later, he integrated snacks and candy to sell to children and young people, prompting him to sell essential food products, cleaning products, and more.
TODAY Erick sells animal feed, embroidery threads, candy, snacks, cleaning products, and much more.
All these achievements motivated him to start another business, a motorcycle cab. With the help of Mentors International, he obtained a micro-loan of $550, with which he brought his motorcycle cab. He cleaned it up and made it look very nice and professional.
It has been a little over a year since Erick first started receiving mentoring from Mentors International. As a result, his income has gone from $65 a month to over $375. However, Erick is still looking for ways to improve his business and support his family.
Erick expresses gratitude every chance he gets, he welcomes mentoring, and consistently fulfills his commitments. Today, his vision for the future is clearer, thanks to mentoring lessons he has applied to his life.
